I’m Vaishali Kasture, Head of the ISV Business for Amazon Web Services in India, and this is how I Lead from Within
Head of the ISV business for Amazon Web Services (AWS) in India, and co-founder of SonderConnect, a non-profit empowering female founders globally – Vaishali Kasture is an esteemed corporate veteran and a recent entrepreneur. Her remarkable ability to simplify what is, or sounds complicated, makes her an admirable and inspiring leader. Kasture talks to us about her relationship with comfort zones, delegating as a way of self-care, and why sponsorship matters more than mentorship.
Leaving Comfort Zones Behind
Ever since I was a little girl, I had a clear vision of becoming a businesswoman. I completed my MBA in finance and was the first in my batch to receive a job offer, from Citibank. That was the beginning of the first phase of my career in corporate banking, the sector which in the 90’s was attracting the best talent in the country. From the year 2000 onward, I moved to IT and IT enabled services and in the last five years, made a third switch that is more technology focused. In my 25 years of work, I went from banking to shared services to technology – successfully reinventing myself each time.
I’ve always been curious and hungry to keep my knowledge and skills relevant to what is happening in the world around me. I feel eager to participate in what is contemporary and to contribute to solving today’s challenges. Every time I’ve become too comfortable, professionally, I’ve made a switch in my career. No one ever had a successful career without taking a few risks; you have to get comfortable being uncomfortable. Bravery, grit and perseverance can conquer anything. Sometimes, of course, change is exhausting – mentally and emotionally – but I enjoy what it brings me. At the end of my career, I will have built a wide variety of life experiences and met diverse people, which will make for an enriching professional journey. I know I will look back at my choices with fondness.
My Core Values
> Living an honest life: engaging in what calls out to your heart, whether at work or home, is the only thing that will work in the long run. You may do well in the interim – make money, have a soaring career graph etc. – but unless you’re doing what you’re doing because your heart tells you to do it, you won’t be successful.
> Bravery over perfection: Women, in their pursuit for perfection, don’t take too many risks. But, if you want to live a fulfilling life, you have to be ready to take calculated risks. You have to be prepared to fail and learn from your failure.
On Self Care
> I ensure that I invest in my physical and mental health. I exercise most days of the week – I’m an avid runner, I love to go to the gym and I practice yoga. I religiously dedicate an hour in the morning to my personal wellness so that I can contribute my best at work and home. What use is all the hard work and money if I die 10 years earlier due to stress and bad health; I want to be around for a long time.
> I often ask myself if what I’m doing is adding value to me, my work or family. If it is, I ask myself if someone else can do it. If yes, I delegate the task to them. I try and delegate everything that I don’t need to do myself. Once you start to realise that doing everything yourself might result in it all turning out perfect but it’s not sustainable – it will rob you of your peace of mind and leave you burnt out.
Women for Women
> Many male colleagues and employees drop by my cabin during the day to just say “hi”. They don’t think twice. But women probably think multiple times before entering, even if they have a reason. Rarely do women employees take a seat at the table, raise their hands or push extra hard for visibility. I tell senior women that it’s our duty to keep our doors open wider, literally and figuratively, for the women in our organisations to know that we are approachable. We ought to make ourselves more available and give of our time.
> If I’m interviewing for a vacancy, I double check to include enough female candidates. If I’m looking at a promotions list, I ensure to take into account the progress and contribution of female employees. We cannot discount women based on our unconscious biases and stereotypes. We should judge them based on the value that they bring to the organisation. Now that most organisations have one female director on the board, women should raise the agenda of looking at everything from the lens of equality.
> Senior women leaders should take the responsibility to pull other women along. Just because our road has been a little challenging doesn’t mean that everyone has to go through the same. It’s our duty to give the entry and mid-level women in our organisations a little push and put them a couple of steps ahead. It always helps to remember that individually we may have power but collectively we have impact.
Men as Sponsors, not Allies
The problem with men as allies is that they will just be an ally – you can have plenty and still not make progress. I strongly believe and advocate that instead of allies/mentors, women in organisations should have a sponsor – a senior powerful man in the organisation who has a seat at the table, is influential and has clear visibility on your work. Organisations should have formal sponsorship programs where sponsors are given targets for their protégé’s progress and their  impact is rigorously tracked.
Also, there can be many genuine male allies who want to see women progress but how do you identify a closet sexist amongst them? Or, a male ally might tell you that he wants to help but disappear on you when the rubber hits the road. The #MeToo movement, which was and is an absolute necessity, has impacted the way men view sponsoring women, as research done afterwards points out –  and so we need to ensure that organisations find ways to deliver tangible and measurable results in getting women to the top.
Advice for Young Women Leaders
> When you want something, ask yourself how badly you want it. Are you willing to put your aspirations first? While I do not advocate doing anything at the cost of family, I do think it is important to know if you want your goal badly enough, so that you are able to push through the barriers that you will inevitably face.
> Surround yourself with people – your partner, parents, friends, colleagues – who believe in you and your capabilities. And, more importantly, who believe that you must give your aspirations a shot. Emotional and moral support go a long way in helping us achieve our dreams.
